Microsoft Releases a Linux-Based OS

Microsoft has announced a new project that is going to be powered by the venerable Linux kernel. At the RSA 2018 Conference, the company shed some light on Microsoft Azure Sphere, a new platform to help create secured, Internet-connected microcontroller (MCU) devices.

Microsoft Azure Sphere is an end-to-end-solution, all the way from Azure Cloud to actual chips found on the targeted IoT device. Microsoft Azure Sphere is comprised of three components: Azure Sphere certified microcontrollers (MCUs); Azure Sphere OS; and Azure Sphere Security Service.

Azure Sphere OS is a custom OS aimed at security and agility. “Unlike the RTOSes common to MCUs today, our defense-in-depth IoT OS offers multiple layers of security. It combines security innovations pioneered in Windows, a security monitor, and a custom Linux kernel to create a highly-secured software environment and a trustworthy platform for new IoT experiences,” wrote Galen Hunt, Partner Managing Director, Microsoft Azure Sphere.

Developers can use Microsoft Visual Studio Tools to write applications for Azure Sphere. These tools include application templates, development tools and the Azure Sphere software development kit (SDK).

Visual Studio is not exclusive anymore to Windows. Microsoft open sourced a version of Visual Studio called Visual Studio Code, which is available for Linux.

The news was not surprising; the Microsoft Azure team has long favored better Linux integration. Not only does Linux run on more than 50% of Azure machines, the company has been using Linux to build components such as Azure Cloud Switch (ACS) and SONiC.

Every day, things seem to happen that I never thought I'd see, but one recent announcement was particularly striking if you've been around the FOSS community anytime in the last 20 years: Microsoft just proclaimed they are creating their own custom version of the Linux kernel.